The Green Manifesto is a personal manifest I try to live by for doing my part in fighting climate change. The goal is to spread awareness on what (most) individuals can do on their own without too much hassle and sacrifice, as well as fight the "Tragedy of the commons" argumentation that often meets individual people who wants to live greener, that it doesn't matter what one individual does. Of course many people don't have the privilege of living close to work or the option to by more expensive, but sustainable clothing, electric vehicle etc. This manifesto is achievable for the typical middle-class person or family, and this is also where most of the impact can be made.
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Use a bike. For day-to-day transportation, like traveling to work (if in biking distance), to the store etc. Favor the bicycle. It's simple, cheap, easy to repair and good for personal health as well as the environment. To avoid owning and repairing a bike, use bike-sharing systems. The North American BikeShare Association(NABSA) maintains a list of systems implementing their open standard.
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Avoid driving personal cars as much as possible, and favor public transportation. Cutting down personal car usage has a positive impact on both the local and the global environment, air-quality etc. In most cities favoring public transportation, the time saved commuting can also be a game changer. If a personal car is unavoidable, try carpooling and avoid single-person driving. When using taxi or ride-sharing services, sharing it with others can improve traffic, save money etc. Multiple studies find that the personal car is parked ~95% of the time, making car-sharing services lucrative for better utilization of personal vehicles, and even reduce the amount of car ownership by 9-13 cars pr. Shared vehicle.
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If it isn't possible to live without a personal car, choose electric if possible, and preferably a pre-owned one. The environmental costs of producing new electric vehicles are higher for electric cars that traditional fossil-fuel cars, but after 18 months of driving this manufacturing cost has been repaid. If buying pre-owned, this manufacturing cost is saved. Do research and be mindful about how the electricity the electric car uses is produced.
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Reduce flying (if possible) when traveling domestic/international and favor the train. In most countries with a decent railroad system, the train is good for travel longer distances with higher speed and comfort. Most modern trains have decent internet connections, making it possible for some work groups to work remote when traveling in office hours. Most trains also provide sleeping cars for traveling at night.
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If possible, live within short traveling distance to the workplace / other often visited locations and favor walking, biking or public transportation. Modern society is city-based, and the United Nations projects that 68 percent of world population will live in urban areas by 2050. Studies also finds that the average city-living person has a lower carbon footprint than the ones living in the country. To keep the footprint low as cities grow bigger, "local living" will be important to keep the footprint down, as well as our physical and mental health.
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Reduce meat consumption and strive towards a flexitarian diet if possible. To be able to limit climate change, water scarcity and pollution, as well as have a sustainable food production to feed a growing global population, studies say that the global meat consumption must down. The difference in fossil fuel usage between animal protein versus plant protein is dramatic a study done in 2003 from the American Society for Clinical Nutrition finds:
The average fossil energy input for all the animal protein production systems studied is 25 kcal fossil energy input per 1 kcal of protein produced. This energy input is more than 11 times greater than that for grain protein production, which is about 2.2 kcal of fossil energy input per 1 kcal of plant protein produced. This is for corn and assumes 9% protein in the corn. Animal protein is a complete protein based on its amino acid profile and has about 1.4 times the biological value of grain protein.
The same study cites that "Producing 1 kg of animal protein requires about 100 times more water than producing 1 kg of grain protein", and livestock uses 1.3% of all water in agriculture. When plant based protein is used as food source for livestock, the aggregated number grows dramatically. Feeding of livestock with soy is a huge waste of direct human-digestible source for protein, where 77% of soy grown in the world is used for animal food. This soy usage leads to de-forestation (to some degree), as well as carbon emission related to Brazilian export of soy to other nations around the world.
As for calory efficiency, 25 calories (from plants, etc) is needed for each 1 calorie of beef, while pork has a 15 to 1 ratio, and chicken, the most efficient of animal calories, requires 9 calories to 1.
A pure vegetarian (or vegan) diet helps sustainability, but a a vegan diet alone lacks nutrients that requires supplements. A flexitarian approach with less meat consumption is accessible for a wider group and is also healthy.
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Avoid products originating from organic farming. The idea of organic farming as "greener" and good for the environment as a whole is a myth. The average organic diet requires 40% more land than the average diet, even though the carbon footprint is essentially equal. The average diet contains about 45% meat, which is the main driver for carbon emission. Take away most of the meat, and the footprint of the flexitarian non-organic diet comes out on top.
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Avoid products containing palm oil. The cultivation of oil producing palms are a mayor driver in deforestation where local forests and growth are cut down to support palms, which leads to killing biodiversity. The carbon footprint this process produces is not sustainable.
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If possible, set up a compost bin for biodegradable waste. Composting is a process that works to speed up the natural decay of organic material by providing the ideal conditions for detritus-eating organisms to thrive. The end-product of this concentrated decomposition process is nutrient-rich soil that can help crops, garden plants and trees to grow. Composting is also an effective way to reduce greenhouse gases like methane, and this created soil and dirt helps with binding carbon dioxide.
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Be mindful about the impacts everyday groceries and favorite food has on the environment. One of the mayor problems driving climate change is overconsumption. As an example, Coffee is the second most traded commodity in the world after oil. This high demand has led to deforestation. In Central America alone, 2.5 million acres of forest is cleared to be able to grow coffee. These tropical forests are critical for protecting atmospheric dynamics, water quality, wildlife etc. Processing coffee also generates much waste, which if not handled properly, is able to pollute local water supplies. Other cheap foods like some species of tuna are classified as threatened because of overfishing, while popular fruits like avocado gets transported in high numbers around the world and has a water usage of 227 liters per fruit.
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Reduce consumption of, or switch from dairy milk to non-dairy milk. Producing a glass of dairy milk results in almost three times the greenhouse gas emissions of any non-dairy milks. Of the non-dairy alternatives, Almond milk uses the most water, while rice milk has the largest emission footprint because of methane produced by bacteria. Soy and oat based milks are the best non-dairy alternatives with this in mind.
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Minimize food waste. One of the biggest sources of greenhouse gas emissions come from overproduction of food and food waste. A 2011 study done by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations shows the total emission from food waste to be the third highest, if food waste had been a country. Nearly one third of all food produced for human consumption end up as waste, where the majority of food wasted is fruit, vegetables, bread, meat and dairy. To avoid food waste, be mindful when planning meals and do so in advance. Prefer food that don't go bad. A good way to keep bread longer is to freeze sliced bread and take it up as needed. Store leftovers in plastic - but use more permanent plastic, like containers. Glass containers are also good. Avoid disposable plastic. Most Tupperware containers have a lifetime warranty, so it's built to last. For wrapping, beeswax wrap is a good alternative for replacing plastic as well as contribute to preventing food spoilage. Many grocery stores and restaurants offer their leftovers on food sharing apps for a reduced price. The danish app Too Good To Go had around one million downloads in early 2020.
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When buying cheap products and consumer goods, do the same exercise as most people do when they invest in more expensive products: Do the research. Try to find out as much as possible about the product, how and where the production happens etc. It's not unusual for cheap products to come from cheap production lines and factories that cuts costs, thus harming the environment in the process.
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Buy repairable electronics, and repair if they break. Electronics, especially smartphones, are quite expensive, so there is a personal economic upside to repair over throwing away and buying new. Repairing over buying is also beneficial for the environment. It is measured that we generate 41 million tonnes of e-waste each year. That’s the equivalent of throwing out 800 laptops every single second. The grade in which the e-waste is recycled, minerals re-used, toxic materials properly disposed etc. varies from where in the world the waste is taken care of. The health risk of toxic materials not properly handled is dramatic. The last years has seen a rise in local businesses offering repairs of smartphones, so repairing over buying helps with local economical growth. If the device is beyond repair, make sure it is returned and taken care of. Apple for instance offers a return program that guarantees proper recycling of old electronic products.
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Consider starting (or participate to) a lending library club. In short, a lending library club is organized around people (like a neighborhood, your workplace etc.) keeping inventory of things that can be lent out for a optional length of time. Examples are tools, party equipment or other things that is used infrequently. Borrowing these items over buying them prevents overconsumption, and can help strengthen local communities in a social way. For books, many cities have Little Free Library boxes where used books can be given away or picked up. A getting started guide can be found here.
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When buying takeaway coffee, bring a reusable cup. Most cafés and coffee shops provide takeaway coffee in paper cups. Even though these paper cups can seem environment neutral, most kinds are made up by a small plastic lining to make them hold the liquid. In most cases the plastic in the cup makes them non-recyclable. With the current consumption, it is estimated that UK alone generates a waste amount of 10 000 cups every two minutes. To avoid adding to the waste pile, consider bringing a reusable cup to order a beverage for. Many coffee shops now give a discount for bringing a reusable cup too. Be mindful that it would take between 20 and 100 uses for a reusable cup to make up for the greenhouse gas emissions of a single-use cup, so consider not taking the coffee on the go at all, enjoying the coffee in a regular ceramic cup in the café itself is a good choice.
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When investing money in the marked, choose the environment-friendly sectors and companies. For people with the means to invest savings, favor eco-investing and choose funds that exclusively consists of shares in green sectors. This includes investing in renewable energy companies while boycotting shares in companies dealing with fossil fuels, etc. The world's biggest fund manager, BlackRock, lost 90 billion dollar investing in fossil fuel companies over 10 years, and is now pulling out of thermal coal. CEO and Chairman Larry Fink urges the importance of green and sustainable investments. Also Microsoft is investing green, putting 1 billion dollar to a carbon reduction fund. For startups, there are many new green-tech companies to keep an eye on for investments. An interesting example of new investment possibilities is the Sun Exchange. With the Sun Exchange, individuals invest in solar cells that are installed in various developing projects in need of cheap, green energy, leasing out the individual cells for a small fee, generating revenue for the owner of the cells.
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When donating to charity, favor the ones that directly challenges climate change. Be mindful and do a thorough background check on the candidates in question and fact-check the impact the donation will have. An example of pro-bono organizations working to raise the standard of living through green technology and training in self-sustainability is Engineers Without Borders (EWB). EWB has national groups all over the world, and both volunteering to their work as well as donations goes to building a sustainable future in third world countries.
Here follows a reading list of books written about or related to the subjects of climate change, environmentalism or green living. This list contains books I have read and find accessible and valuable. Please note that some of the books are opinionated by the authors, but common for them all is a strong tethering to science and facts. Since the science of climate change is ever-evolving, the list contains date of publishing.
| Title | Author | Language | Publishing year |
|---|---|---|---|
| How to Avoid a Climate Disaster: The Solutions We Have and the Breakthroughs We Need | Bill Gates | English | 2021 |
| Numbers Don't Lie: 71 Things You Need to Know About the World | Vaclav Smil | English | 2020 |
| The Future We Choose: The Stubborn Optimist's Guide to the Climate Crisis | Christiana Figueres, Tom Rivett-Carnac | English | 2021 |
| Verden på vippepunktet | Prof. Dag O. Hessen | Norwegian | 2020 |
| The Uninhabitable Earth | David Wallace-Wells | English | 2019 |
| Enlightenment Now | Steven Pinker | English | 2018 |
| 21 Lessons for the 21st Century | Yuval Noah Harari | English | 2018 |
| Jakten på den grønne lykken | Bjørn Stærk | Norwegian | 2018 |
| Six Degrees: Our Future on a Hotter Planet | Mark Lynas | English | 2007 |
| Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed | Jared Diamond | English | 2005 |
